10 stitch Blanket - it spirals till you run out of yarn. And you only need a pair of little double-pointed needles to do a whole blanket. None of the tedious pick-up-stitches across a whole long seam, as you have to with most "log cabin" patterns.

Crochet - Granny Spike Stitch - leaves fewer gaps, because the second double crochet is crochet through the top of the second double crochet of the row below. Possibly use a dc,tc, dc pattern in the clusters? From Do It Darling.

Hats- A Great Resource Here! Four Basic Ways to Increase or Decrease for the Crown of a Hat(depending on whether you start your hat at the bottom- the brim- or the top). And to be Extra Handy, they put all of them into Chart Form!